1: William Shakespeare was born in Stratford, to John Shakespeare and Mary Arden Alderman. Becoming baptized shortly after his birth on April 23th, 1564. Shakespeare was the second child, but his sister Joan died in infancy. Shakespeare learned Latin and a little Greek as a child in his seven years of schooling.

2: Shakespeare married Anne Hathaway, while she was three months pregnant which resulted in the spread of many rumors. The names of his children were Susania, Judith and Hamlet (who died in boyhood). The image above illustrates the family tree of the Shakespeare Family, focusing in on William and Anne and their offspring.

4: Shakespeare is famous for three professions: playwright, poet and actor. In his career, he wrote 37 plays that are world famous. Aside from plays, he wrote comedies, tragedies, sonnets and histories. The name of the acting company that Shakespeare worked for was The Lord Chamberlain's Men, which later changed to The Kings Men, because of the decree of KIng James. One of Shakespeare's most famous famous quotes is "To be or not to be."

5: Shakespeare acted for Queen Elizabeth many times over the course of his career, which is how he gained fame and success. Shakespeare co-owned the Globe Theater,(shown above) with Cuthbeut Burbage. The Globe Theater was constructed outside of London's city limits because of the rise of crime in London. The opening date of the Globe Theater was September 21st, 1599 and featured many features such as an overhanging first floor and pillared poles. Acting in the Globe Theater was only performed by males, because acting was not seen as honorable for women. Sadly, in 1613 a fire burnt the Globe Theater down.

6: To write his plays, Shakespeare used Early Modern English. Sometimes in society people spoke the way actors in Shakespeare's plays spoke, based on their different styles. Some words that Shakespeare used have different meanings today or have never been heard of. Through the use of the ', Shakespeare would utilize shortened words in his works.

7: The Renaissance was a time period where outstanding contributions to art and literature took place. During this time period, many famous authors such as William Shakespeare revolutionized poetry, plays and other forms of literature . These contributions are still evident in the arts today and have a lasting impact on how readers and writers think. | Essential Question: How does the Renaissance influence literature and history?